


is it cool if i hold your hand?

by nooneleftilove



Category: Mean Girls (2004), Mean Girls - Richmond/Benjamin/Fey
Genre: F/F, catch me writing uncommon ship fics hella, i love them, theyre so soft? in my head at least
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2018-07-13
Updated: 2018-07-13
Packaged: 2019-06-09 17:08:17
Rating: Not Rated
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,385
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/15272253
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/nooneleftilove/pseuds/nooneleftilove
Summary: Janis and Gretchen, known disasters, finally go on a date. They are both gay bundles of nerves, and willing to do anything to make it a good one.title taken from First Date by blink182, which may or may not make a cameo in this fic.





	is it cool if i hold your hand?

**Author's Note:**

> they would be perfect for each other okay?

_Really, this whole thing was Cady’s fault_. At least, that was what was racing through Janis’ head as she rifled through her drawer for a pair of matching socks. If Cady hadn’t had been the bigger person, if she hadn’t have slowly fused her friend groups together, none of this would have occurred, and she wouldn’t have a giddy mess of butterflies in her stomach 

Janis and Gretchen would have never bonded, and they would have never realized how good they are for each other. Janis recognized how anxious and unsure Gretchen was, and Gretchen admired Janis for her ‘ _do no harm but take no shit’_ attitude. One thing led to another, and it turns out feelings had developed, and at the very moment Janis was thinking all this, Gretchen was on her way to pick her up for their first date. 

She was slipping on her boots when her phone buzzed, and seconds later, her doorbell rang. Janis trotted down the stairs, miraculously only tripping once as she raced to the door. She pulled open her door to reveal a visibly flustered Gretchen shifting her weight from side to side, fiddling with her fingers. Janis tapped her on the shoulder and gave an awkward wave, “Hi.” 

In response, Gretchen jumped a little, pulled from her own world. “Oh! Hey, so you ready to go?” Her words were rushed and her eyes flitted from Janis’ eyes, to the walls on either side of her.

“Yeah.” Janis reached behind her and shuts the door, then followed Gretchen to her car. She clicked her seatbelt in and looks to Gretchen who had done the same, and was turning the key. They pulled off and Gretchen was drumming on the wheel as she drove - a nervous tick. The pair sat in silence for what felt like forever, until Gretchen spoke. 

“You can plug your phone in to the aux cord and play some music if you want,” she said, eyes not shifting from in front of her, which would have been admirable if they weren’t at a stop sign at the exit of Janis’ neighborhood. Janis gave a thumbs up (that Gretchen didn’t see) and plugged up her phone and started playing whatever Spotify put on shuffle. Following that, she placed a hand on Gretchen’s arm to get her attention, pulling it back when Gretchen turned to her.

”Calm down, okay? I don’t bite on the first date. We know each other, this is just a date, no biggie.” That statement made her a hypocrite, by Gretchen didn’t have to know that. She was also nervous, but she hid it well behind humor. 

Gretchen exhaled with a nod. She turned her head and grinned at Janis. “Yep, yes. Okay, cool.” 

They locked eyes for a brief second, but then Gretchen returned her attention to the road, appearing more relaxed. 

This relaxation lasted approximately a song and a half, when Janis used her last skip and some force from beyond (read: the Spotify algorithm) started playing _First Date_.

Now, it was Janis’ turn to be uncomfortable. The lyrics hit a little too close to home, and Gretchen was listening with intent, since she had never heard it. _Shit_ , Janis thought. All the fears Tom Delonge expressed rang true. She did have no clue what she was supposed to wear, she was all of a sudden insecure about her half bleached hair, and most of all, she was _dying_ to hold Gretchen’s hand. She did all she could to tune out the lyrics, focusing on the subtle nuances of the bass-line, or the kicking rhythm of the drums. 

Now it was Gretchen’s turn to note the discomfort in the air, and she took the song as the catalyst. She briefly took her eyes off the road to look and Janis, while taking one hand off the wheel. She offers it to Janis wordlessly, shyly grinning when she feels fingers intertwine her own. 

“Don’t crash. Pence is Vice President if we crash holding hands and he finds out he’s gonna get Trump to make a law or something,” Janis teased, trying to distract from her sweaty palms and blushing cheeks. It made Gretchen giggle, and Janis would never say it out loud, but she thought Gretchen’s laugh was absolutely adorable.  

The rest of the ride went well, and though they were both nervous, it was a more relaxed ride than before.

* * *

 

It should be noted that while Janis asked Gretchen to go on a date, Gretchen was the one who planned it. That is why, for their first date, they were at Build-a-Bear, building stuffed animal versions of each other. When Gretchen suggested it over text, Janis rolled her eyes to keep up appearances for Damian who was reading her phone over her shoulder, but she ultimately agreed. 

The pair had selected the animals they thought reflected each other best, and kissed fabric hearts and made wishes on them as the overly enthusiatic woman at the stuffing machine requested. After the “furry friends” were stuffed and stitched, the pair split up to find outfits. 

They met back up after they checked out, and walked hand-in-hand back to Gretchen’s car to exchange bears.

Once they were both in their seats, they exchanged house-shaped boxes. Janis already knew that Gretchen had selected a camoflauge bear because “ _I don’t know, it kinda looks like paint_ ” and Janis picked a pink bear with heart patterns for Gretchen because “ _Duh_!” The only mystery was the outfits. 

“Open yours first,” Gretchen exclaimed, bouncing up and down with excitement. Janis chuckled, but did as Gretchen asked, popping open the box to reveal a camp bear in a green jacket and denim shorts. “The jacket isn’t one-hundred percent right, but it’s close.” She gently tugged on the bear’s jacket with a soft smile. “Do you like it?” 

Janis nodded and hugged the bear. “Yeah, it’s pretty cool. Great fashion sense!” She joked, looking down at her nearly identical outfit. She watched expectantly as Gretchen opened her box and pulled out the heart-covered bear in a floral dress and a white jean jacket. She momentarily placed the bear in her lap to clear her box and Janis’ to the back, before holding it up and grinning. 

“It’s so cute!” Gretchen gripped the bear by the arms and made it do a little dance. “You did so good!” She leaned over and kissed Janis on the cheek, making her blush like when she grabbed her hand. “I’m going to buckle it in, do you want me to buckle yours too?” She asked, opening her door to move to the back. 

Janis turned around and placed the bear in the seat with a chuckle. Gretchen pulled the seatbelt over the Janis Bear, placed the Gretchen Bear beside her, and clicked the seatbelt for her too, tossing the boxes into the trunk before returning to her seat and pulling off. 

* * *

 

Gretchen escorted Janis to her front porch, the Janis Bear being held between them like a child. Janis gingerly took the bear under her arm and gave Gretchen a hug. “Thank you for today, it was fun,” she said, glancing down at her feet then back up to the other girl. 

“Totally! We need to do it again!” Gretchen ended her sentence with an excited clap. There was a moment of silence, then Janis felt Gretchen’s arms snake around her waist. “Dread the thought of our very first kiss?” She asked, quoting the song that played in the car as she leaned in to capture Janis’ lips. She felt Janis gasp, and notice the moment of stiffness she had before she returned the kiss. 

Janis felt like the kiss ended too soon, but enjoyed the glowing smile that spread on Gretchen’s face. “Drive safe.” She placed another kiss on her cheek. “Damian is blowing up my phone because he’s hiding in my room and he saw that,” she explained, turning the handle. “Bye, I’ll text you,” she added with a wave that Gretchen reciprocated as she turned to walk away.  

Janis watched through the window of the door as Gretchen got in her car, and appeared to squeal and do a happy dance. She fondly rolled her eyes as the car rolled away, and went to go answer the endless questions Damian had.


End file.
